Israel PM Netanyahu fires defence minister Gallant
1 hour ago
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Jon Donnison and George Wright
BBC News
Reporting fromJerusalem and London
Reuters
A photo from October last year
shows Netanyahu, left, next to Gallant during a press conference
Israel's
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has fired defence minister Yoav Gallant,
saying there is a "crisis of trust" between them.
Netanyahu
said in a statement his trust in Gallant had "eroded" in recent
months and Foreign Minister Israel Katz would replace Gallant.
Gallant
posted on social media that the "security of the state of Israel was and
will always remain the mission of my life".
The sacking has already
prompted protests on the streets of Tel Aviv and political opposition leaders
have called for wider public demonstrations.
Netanyahu
and Gallant have long had a divisive working relationship, and over the past
year there have been reports of shouting matches between the two men over
Israel’s war strategy.
Gallant
has said a hostage release deal with Hamas should be prioritised ahead of
continuing the war in Gaza, a position rejected by the PM.
The
former defence minister has also been unhappy at plans to continue to allow
Israel’s Ultra Othrodox citizens to be exempt from serving in the military.
Months
before the start of the war in Gaza in October 2023, Netanyahu had fired
Gallant over political differences, before reinstating him following major
public outcry.
But
on Tuesday Netanyahu said: "In the midst of a war, more than ever, full
trust is required between the prime minister and the minister of defence.
He
said although there had been trust and "fruitful work" in the first
months of the war, "during the last months this trust cracked".
Netanyahu
added that "significant gaps were discovered between me and Gallant in the
management of the campaign".
These
were "accompanied by statements and actions that contradict the decisions
of the government," he added.
Following his firing, Gallant
posted only a short message on X, stating that the security of Israel "was
and will always remain the mission of my life".
Aviv Atlas
Hundreds took to the Ayalon
Highway in Tel Aviv on Tuesday night protesting against Gallant's dismissal
His
replacement Katz is seen as even more hawkish in terms of military strategy.
Another
Netanyahu ally, Gideon Sa'ar - who previously held no cabinet portfolio- will
become the new foreign minister.
Gallant's
removal will come into effect in 48 hours. The appointment of the new ministers
requires the approval of the government and then the Knesset.
Netanyahu first fired Gallant in March
2023 following their disagreement over controversial plans to
overhaul the justice system.
But
he was forced to retract the sacking following massive public protests in
several cities in Israel - an event that became known as "Gallant
Night."
In
May this year, Gallant
voiced open frustration at the government’s failure to address the question of
a post-war plan for Gaza. Gallant wanted Netanyahu to declare
publicly that Israel has no plans to take over civilian and military rule in
Gaza.
It
was a rare public sign of divisions within Israel's war cabinet over the
direction of the military campaign.
“Since
October, I have been raising this issue consistently in the cabinet,” Gallant
said, “and have received no response".
Netanyahu
responded by saying that he was "not ready to exchange Hamastan for
Fatahstan," in reference to rival Palestinian groups Hamas and Fatah.
Responding
to Gallant's removal on Tuesday night, members of Israel's political opposition
parties called for protests from the public.
A
group representing the families of people taken hostage by Hamas in its 7
October attack also condemned Netanyhu's dismissal of Gallant, calling it a
continuation of efforts to "torpedo" a release deal.
Over
100 hostages out of 251 taken by Hamas on 7 October 2023 remain unaccounted for
more than a year into the war.
The
Hostages and Missing Families Forum called on the incoming minister Katz to
“express an explicit commitment to the end of the war and to carry out a
comprehensive deal for the immediate return of all the abductees”.
Gallant’s
dismissal also takes place on the day of the presidential election in the US-
Israel’s key backer in its war in Gaza - a timing noted by several Israeli
media outlets.
Gallant
was viewed as having a much better relationship with the White House than
Netanyahu.
A
representative for the White House's National Security Council said on Tuesday:
"Minister Gallant has been an important partner on all matters related to
the defence of Israel. As close partners, we will continue to work
collaboratively with Israel’s next minister of defence."
Observers note that Gallant's
removal also comes at a time where Netanyahu is under pressure by far-right
politicians to pass a bill which would have continued to allow Israel's Ultra
Othrodox citizens to be exempt from serving in the military. Gallant had been a
high-profile opponent of the bill.
